‘Jugads’ don city roads, STA looks the other way

Chandigarh: The self-fabricated ‘rehris’ fitted with scooter engine getting drive from scooter wheel, termed as ‘Jugads’ dons city roads zooming past every other vehicle poses great threat to the commuters. Non-registered and neither road worthy, are such modified vehicles being run go unchecked on the city roads.

There is no agency to check the violation as such violators are not under preview of UT traffic police whereas State Transport Authority (STA) looks the other way and have failed to impound such ‘jugads’.

The STA has no records to the strength of such ‘jugads’ being run on the city roads and neither the STA has initiated the challaning or impounding drive of such makeshift vehicles.

President of ArriveSAFE Harman Singh Sidhu said, “It is mandatory for a vehicle to prove its roadworthiness before being made mobile. Such ‘jugads’ are very dangerous as they are given drive by scooter engine but don’t support adequate breaking system and are very unsafe not only for the driver but also for other commuters. They must be banned.”

In the year 2012, UT police in tandem with the STA had launched a drive to impound such vehicles when UT police unearthed a racket of scooter thieves stealing scooters and then fitting the scooter engine under a rehri after dismantling the scooter. Then for some years such ‘jugads’ disappeared from the city roads but now from past few months, the number is increasing day by day, said Sidhu. STA Additional Secretary, Rajiv Tiwari said, “We have been receiving complaints about such scooter driven rehris operating on city roads. We will get the challaning started and also impound such make shift vehicles.”

One can see such rehris zipping past even loaded with goods and also some of the rehri owners have also fixed the scooter handle instead of a proper cycle rehri handle.